Gionee S9 finally made official in China and pre-ordering for CNY 2,499

After a long wait and several teasers revealed by the manufacturer, the Gionee S9 was finally made official in China, being introduced as the company’s new flagship.

At a first look, it looks like a premium device, made on a metallic chassis and somehow reminding us of the iPhone, especially when looking at it from the back. Still, the dual-camera setup, as well as the fingerprint scanner, with the logo on it, is what differentiates the phone from its competitors. Actually, it might be the only phone with a logo on the scanner!

The Gionee S9 measures 154.2 x 76.4 x 7.4 mm and weighs 168g, being very different from the previous model, S8. But this is a natural move from the manufacturer, after all.

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The handset comes with a 5.5″ LTPS IPS LCD display, with 16 million colours and a full HD resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, resulting a density of 401 pixels per inch. Oh, and it’s also a 3D touch panel, protected by Corning’s Gorilla Glass 4.

Under the hood, the Gionee S9 is rocking MediaTek’s Helip P10 chip, with an octa-core configuration (4 x 2.0 GHz Cortex-A53 and 4 x 1.0 GHz Cortex-A53), aided by 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of internal storage. However, the latter can be expanded, using a microSD card, with up to 256 GB.

Moving on, the camera department is represented by a dual-unit on the rear, with a 13 MP sensor, as well as a 5 MP one, featuring phase detection auto focus and an LED flash. As for the front-facing, unit, it’s a 13 MP snapper, so expect some great looking selfies from this phone.

The S9 does have a 3.5mm jack and it has active noise cancellation technology, with a dedicated microphone, while the DTS sound technology provides a high-end audio experience.

In terms of battery, the Gionee S9 comes with the same 3000 mAh power pack as last year, non-removable, and Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow, customized with the manufacturer’s own interface, Amigo OS 3.5.

The handset is available in Black, Gold and Rose Gold and it’s listed for pre-ordering in China, for CNY 2,499, which roughly translates to $364. However, if you’re planning to get it, it will also be available for direct purchase 10 days from now, on November 25.

What are your thoughts on the Gionee S9? Would you buy this Chinese smartphone?